Why the U. S. Fears a Chinese Bid for Westinghouse Electric -<br />By JONATHAN SOBLEAPRIL 7, 2017<br />The Trump administration is worried that Chinese investors might try to buy Westinghouse Electric, the troubled American nuclear power company<br />that the Japanese conglomerate Toshiba has offered for sale.<br />Alternatively, the administration could encourage a rival bid from a business based in the United States or in a friendly country — though<br />that could be a challenge, given the small number of nuclear-plant builders and Westinghouse’s history of losing large amounts of money.<br />Although Westinghouse does not make nuclear weapons, the Trump administration may fear<br />that China could find ways to use the company’s technology to improve its nuclear arsenal, another pillar of its growing power.<br />Part of its concern could be economic: A widely predicted “nuclear renaissance” has stalled across most of the developed world — few plants are being built or planned in Western countries —<br />but it is possible Washington does not want China to dominate a future revival.
